Prisoner's Dilemma
"Prisoner's Dilemma" is the twelfth episode of season 2, and overall the thirty-fifth produced hour of Person of Interest. It originally aired on January 10, 2013. Synopsis 2007 In Prague, Reese and Kara enter a hotel room where three men are concluding a deal involving the purchasing of plans for combat drones. Reese and Kara pose as hotel guests, then Reese kills two men and Kara kills the other. Reese is visibly nervous and Kara has to calm him, explaining that the people that they killed were enemy combatants and that killing people is in fact their job. And in order for Reese to be good at his job, he'd have to learn to love it. 2009 In Paris, Reese and Kara go to a bar for drinks to follow a couple they've been ordered to kill. Reese asks why they're supposed to kill the couple and Kara says that she doesn't care why they've been ordered to kill them. She suggests that Reese play along with their cover as a married couple. Once the bar's other patrons leave, Kara shoots out the camera while Reese advances on the couple. After killing the couple, Kara Stanton and Reese go back to their apartment and clean out any traces of their presence. Kara tells Reese that they can take a break. However, when he says he's fine, Kara draws a gun on him and tells him to choose between being a boy scout or a killer. She reminds him that he choose the life. Reese slams her into a wall and says that he loves his work, and they kiss. 2010 In Morocco, Corwin and Snow meet Kara and Reese and inform them that they need to recover a laptop with source code stolen from the Pentagon. The agents are heading to a company town in China to recover the laptop. Snow privately tells Reese to kill Kara once they have the package. Smiling, he walks out and Kara tells him that she needs the killer, not the boy scout. In China, Reese hesitates to kill Kara, and she shoots him instead. Laughing, he tells her that he had the same orders as her and then gets out as the U.S. bombs the town. 2012 The Machine monitors Reese's capture and determines that its asset may be compromised. At Rikers Island Penitentiary , Carter interrogates Reese while Donnelly watches through a one-way mirror. She informs Reese that he's being held indefinitely as an enemy combatant and will not be allowed access to legal counsel until his identity is confirmed. Reese remains silent. At The Library, Finch calls Fusco at the station. The detective wonders where Carter is and why no one is returning his calls, and Finch tells him that he needs Fusco to protect their newest Number. Fusco isn't impressed... until Finch sends him photos of the woman, supermodel Karolina Kurkova. At Rikers, one of the other men claims his name is Devon Clark and he was at the bank applying for a loan for his pest control company. The other two prisoners have similar cover stories When Reese is brought in, Carter warns him that he's being watched and asks for his name. Reese sticks to the name on his fake ID, John Warren. Donnelly brings up the files they have on the ID while Reese claims that he has no idea why he was arrested and tells Carter that she's his only hope of going home. In Washington, the Special Counsel receives a memo from the FBI asking about his connection to the man in the suit. He calls his man, Hersh, who has been tracking the rogue operative, and tells him that he has to find the operative and make him disappear. When Hersh warns that the operative is hard to track, the Special Council tells him that the FBI believes he's one of four men being held at Rikers. Hersh promises to eliminate all four and then shoots a gun into the air. Two nearby police officers immediately arrest him, just as Hersh planned. Warden Hutchins warns Donnelly that he's holding the prisoners too long, but Donnelly warns him that he's aware of plenty of penal violations and tells him to tend to those. Carter comes in and asks Donnelly to uncuff the men so that they'll trust her enough to come clean. Donnelly reluctantly agrees and then figures that the man they're looking for could have created an airtight cover. The three mercenaries all live out of state and agents are checking on them, while Reese apparently works on Wall Street. Donnelly leaves with Carter to check out the address and see if it's valid. As they go, Carter sends a text message to Finch about their investigation, and Finch tells her to check it out. When Donnelly and his men arrive at the office address with Carter, they discover that there is a complete business. Reese has an office with photos of his family and a concerned secretary who says that she hasn't seen Reese in several days. Once she's alone, Carter calls Finch, who confirms that the John Warren ID is a complete cover identity. However, he admits that if Donnelly spots a flaw then their work would be in jeopardy. Finch warns Carter that she's in danger as well, while Carter warns Finch that right now the three mercenaries think they're being held for murder. Once they realize that Donnelly wants the man in the suit, they'll give Reese up. Carter figures that they can pin the murder on one of them, and Finch confirms that he's already checking their backgrounds to figure out which one they can tie to the murder. Meanwhile, Finch is working on an escape plan. Carter suggests that maybe Fusco could help her, and Finch checks on Fusco. The detective is busy being maced by Karolina when he follows her into a park. He finally identifies himself as a cop, and Finch tells Carter that he'd better handle it on his own. Donnelly finds Carter and admits that the office set appears convincing. He gives her a wireless earpiece so that he can feed her questions during her interrogations. Donnelly assures her that they will go through the lives of all four prisoners with a fine-tooth comb. Carter asks Reese if he's ever killed anyone and he responds by asking if she's killed anyone. She refuses to be diverted and Reese explains that he killed people in Bosnia when he was on a peacekeeping mission. He describes in graphic detail how he killed a militant after the man's gun misfired. Reese says that he doesn't like talking about it, but Donnelly figures that they've hit a nerve and tells Carter to keep pushing about the dead militant. Carter keeps Reese talking about his family and Donnelly confirms that they were alive, while Reese asks Carter where she served. Donnelly finally calls Carter out and complains about her approach, but Carter insists that she's trying to build rapport. The agent admits that everything Reese has said checks and wants her to hit the other three men just as hard. Hersh is brought to Rikers. Meanwhile, Carter continues interrogating Reese and the other prisoners, and all of their information checks out. Donnelly and Carter finally break the cover on one prisoner, Brian Kelly. However, now that they've identified him, they can no longer hold him as an enemy combatant. Donnelly has confirmed that Kelly has an alibi for one of the murders, and figures they're down to three remaining suspects. Reese is taken out to the exercise area and Bear's previous owner, Byron, is among the prisoners. He and his fellow skinheads come after Reese, but another prisoner stops Byron when he throws a punch. As the skinheads leave, the new con tells Reese that someone wants to see him. He takes Reese over to... Elias. Elias talks to Reese privately outside of camera range. The crime lord knows all about Donnelly's hunt for Reese and admits that he still appreciates Reese saving his life. Elias wants to help him and Reese tells him not to protect him because Donnelly used to think that he worked for Elias. Reese points Hersh out and warns Elias that he's a dangerous man, and suggests that Elias get a photo of him to Finch. Elias Is glad to help. Finch grabs Karolina and tries to take her to the station, but she insists that she doesn't want the police involved. As they hide behind a vending cart, Finch calls Fusco and sends him a photo of Hersh. While the Armenians after Karolina close in, Fusco confirms that Hersh is a government man who was looking into Corwin's death. Finch thanks him and cuts off before Fusco can ask for help. In Rikers, Donnelly tells Carter to push for details that Reese doesn't want to answer. He talks about how he left the military just before 9/11 and never reenlisted because he was afraid he wouldn't know how to do anything else. Reese continues to recite his background info and Donnelly confirms that it's all valid. When he mentions his boss, "Howard French," Finch hacks Carter's link and assures her that the French ID will check out. After checking on French, Donnelly calls Carter out because one of the other prisoners, Charles Macavoy, wants to talk. He figures that one of the other prisoners is ratting him out and gives his real name. Macavoy asks for immunity in return for what he knows, and Carter starts to bargain. Donnelly comes in and asks Macavoy to confirm all the information they have on the man in the suit. Carter disagrees but Donnelly figures they can shock Macavoy into giving himself away if he's the one they want. Macavoy has no idea what Donnelly is talking about and the agent promises that he'll get the immunity deal if he can identify the man in the suit. As Macavoy agrees, the fire alarm goes off and a guard takes Macavoy away. Meanwhile, Finch tells Carter that he set the alarms off and she should drop her phone into Macavoy's pocket. Out on the yard, Finch calls Macavoy and tells him what he knows about the man's family as well as the $6.2 million that he had in a Cayman Island account until Finch removed it. As Macavoy realizes what's happening, Finch asks if Macavoy wants to make a deal with him to get his money back, or with Donnelly. While the prisoners are escorted in, Hersh gets to Kelly's cell and kills him. Donnelly gives Macavoy a blanket immunity deal and tells him to identify the man in the suit. Macavoy looks at the photos of Reese and the remaining man, Packer, and points out Packer. However, Donnelly gets a message and realizes that someone got to Macavoy. Outside, Carter asks Donnelly what happened and the agent tells her that Kelly apparently hung himself in his cell. Donnelly figures that the alarms were a ruse and that Macavoy is now too nervous to be telling the truth. Since Macavoy fingered Packer, Donnelly figures that Reese is his man. Donnelly tells Carter to break Reese and sends her back in. When she asks why he left the military, Reese responds by repeating his earlier question about whether she has killed anyone. Finch tells her to go slow so that he can provide any details that Reese provides. Reese continues providing details and Finch manages to keep one step ahead of Donnelly. Carter is forced to stall as Finch creates a fake girlfriend, and she agrees to trade a question for a question. She tells Reese that she killed a man during a raid and still doesn't know if he was a terrorist or a civilian. Carter then asks Reese about his girlfriends, asking if he was ever in love. He tosses out a name and tells Carter she's the reason he left the military. Reese relies on the truth, explaining that they were in a hotel room in Niagara Falls just after they got out of the service. Reese wanted to go back but realized he'd never have a life with his one true love if he went back into the military. When Carter asks what happened, Reese says that he let her slip away and wonders what his life would have been if he re-upped. Carter goes out to meet with Donnelly and asks if they've managed to break Reese's story. The agent says that they have one last test. Meanwhile, the guards take Reese back out to the yard. Donnelly watches on the camera and tells Carter that Byron came after Reese earlier. He figures that if they leave the two of them alone, they can force Reese to demonstrate his combat skills to stay alive. Hutchins objects but Donnelly has him order all of the guards out of the yard. Byron comes after Reese and starts beating him, and Reese nods to Elias' man to stay out of it. The Aryans beat Reese, who refuses to put up a fight. Hersh moves in with a knife, but Elias, spotting the killer, calls the Aryans off and says that Reese has had enough. In the office, Carter tells Donnelly that what he is doing isn't right. She gives him back his earpiece and goes to interrogate Packer again. Carter pressures him, claiming that Macavoy and Kelly made a deal with her. He finally gives her real name and demands a lawyer, but Carter demands to know who he was working with. Packer finally snaps and starts choking her, and the guards come in and subdue him. Carter walks out and tells Donnelly that Packer is her man. Donnelly soon releases Reese. Finch is busy making plans to break into prison when Carter calls to tell her that it won't be necessary. Later, Reese meets Carter and asks Fusco how is. She tells him that Finch has Fusco tied up with something. Fusco and Karolina are on the street, hiding behind a car as the Armenians try to kill them. The detective tells her to run and Karolina reluctantly leaves him while he fires back with both guns. Reese thanks Carter, admitting that he couldn't have gotten through it without a friend to talk to. As she asks if any of what he said was true, Donnelly arrives and holds both of them at gunpoint. He congratulates Carter on capturing the man in the suit. Carter drops her gun and Donnelly tells her to handcuff Reese. After she does so, Donnelly handcuffs her and tells her that she threw away a career. He tells Reese that Carter is the one who gave him away and takes them both away. Karolina kisses Fusco and thanks him for his help. She walks off after telling him to call her, and Fusco gets a call from Finch. Finch sends him Carter's last known coordinates and warns him that he has an emergency. As Finch heads out with Bear, a nearby pay phone rings. Finch ignores it, and all of the other nearby phones ring. He finally picks up a phone and The Machine gives him the next Number. Donnelly drives Carter and Reese to a safe house so he can contact someone in Justice. He admits that he doesn't know anyone that he can trust for backup. Donnelly suspect Carter after Reese's DNA and fingerprints disappeared, but confirmed his suspicions when he saw her reaction to Reese being beaten at Rikers. Carter says that she was just helping a friend and tries to explain, but Donnelly insists that Reese is a highly trained murderer and he made that choice. Finch returns to the library and decodes the Number. He realizes that it's Donnelly. He calls Donnelly and tells him to stop the car. Before Finch can explain, a truck rams into Donnelly's car, slamming it off the road. All three occupants are injured, and Kara Stanton steps out of the truck and shoots Donnelly dead. She then asks Reese if he missed her and injects him with a sedative. Trivia *The red truck that crashed Donnelly's car is the same one Reese used to hit Jimmy Calhoun's car in . *Two of the books that make up Donnelly's Social Security Number are real books. The book with the Dewey Decimal Number 008 (keywords: "Toward MW") appears to be fictional. *In the past, the dates in the episodes corresponded to air dates. This time, the timeline corresponds more closely to the shoot dates. The bank scenes were filmed on Nov. 15, 2012. Production notes *The boy on one of the framed photographs in John Warren's office is Jeffrey G. Hunt's son Cameron. The photo was taken at The Promenade at Westlake, near Los Angeles. Jeffrey Hunt had previously published the photo on his Twitter. *The second picture was taken at the Person of Interest Cast Party celebrating the end of Season 1 and the beginning of their filming hiatus. Bloopers and continuity errors *In the scene where John is in the Czech Republic with Kara Stanton to commit his first triple homicide, the cut's camera title says "IDŐJÁRÁS KAMERA 22" which is Hungarian for "Weather Cam 22", and not Czech. *When Finch receives the phone call from the pay phone informing him of the latest number, he is several miles away from the library. Yet he somehow manages to get back to the library, find the books matching what he had heard, and call Agent Donnelly, all within a matter of minutes. Music *"Eminence Front" by The Who - When Reese gets released. Analysis *During the interrogation, many of the facts Reese gave about his alias can be linked to events in previous episodes: **Reese states his parents' names as Conrad and Laura. "Laura Reese" was the name that appeared in the press release for which was supposed to have flashback scenes about Reese's childhood. **He tells Carter that "John Warren" had been to Mexico for a few days from May 3 - 5, 2012. This coincides with Reese delivering Brad Jennings to Torreón penitentiary after he stopped him from killing his wife. **The story about John Warren and his girlfriend Allison watching the towers go down while on vacation matches Reese's real past with Jessica. Themes Choice is a central theme to this episode. *Kara Stanton accosts Reese on a mission, demanding that Reese make a final decision as to whether he'll be "the boy scout" or "the killer". *Reese tells Carter that the choices we make change who we become, and openly questions his choice back in 2001 when he re-enlisted into the military. *Agent Donnelly lectures Carter that Reese hadn't accidentally become a killer. He explains that he deliberately chose that life, and that Carter has made her choice by siding with him. Cultural references *''"‪Prisoner's dilemma‬"'' usually refers to an example of a non-zero-sum game analysed in game theory. It describes a situation in which two players each have two options whose outcome depends crucially on the simultaneous choice made by the other. While the theory can be applied to many situations in daily life, it is often formulated in terms of two prisoners separately deciding whether to confess to a crime. Literary techniques Promo Videos Person of Interest - Time For A Deal|Time For A Deal Person of Interest - Miss Me?|Miss Me? Person of Interest - That's Your Man|That's Your Man Person of Interest - Answer The Question|Answer The Question Person of Interest - Hello, John|Hello, John Person of Interest - Clean Cover|Clean Cover es:Prisoner's Dilemma 212 212